About this project

Doodle3D Transform is a new kind of 3D design tool. We call it a 2D-to-3D app, focused on designing for 3D printing. It works in browsers, but also as app on your tablet. With Doodle3D Transform you get a very capable app, that is very easy to use.

2D+1 = 3D

Design real functional objects

We think CAD (3D modelling) is a pretty difficult skill to master and with Doodle3D Transform we want to provide an easier point of entry for a large audience who are not necessarily product engineers or animation experts. With all the easy access and affordability of 3D printing, we feel that 3D design apps should be equally accessible and affordable. We set out to develop an application that would allow you to create a lot of different and advanced models, without having to go through many hours of learning how the interface works. For us, 3D printing is all about realising your own designs.

Doodle3D Transform is a webtechnology-based design tool. It works on any device that is capable of running a browser (PC, mac, tablets, laptops, you name it). If this campaign is successful we will also make sure the app is available as an app on the appstores of Apple, Google and Microsoft.

Scan and trace a photo or image from the web into your design.

A litte mario made with Doodle3D Transform, multi-color was achieved through adjusting the depth in the figure and then pauzing the print and swapping filament

So, fun! You have yourself an easy to use app that’ll let you make some nice designs within the span of minutes. Now what can you do with that design?

I have a 3D printer:

Perfect, time to get making!

Download STL: process the file in the slicer of your choice and send it to your 3D printer. You can plug Transform right into your regular workflow.

Print wirelessly to WiFi-Box: the Doodle3D WiFi-Box is compatible with Marlin-based 3D printers and you’ll be able to wirelessly send your print to your own 3D printer.

I don’t have a 3D printer?:

We got your back. We are building this software to let more people get involved with 3D design and give it a try. If you are not ready or interested in purchasing your own 3D printer you can use the following methods to get your 3D print to you.

Export to 3D Hubs: Have your design 3D printed by someone close by. 3D Hubs is the worlds largest distributed 3D printer network. Basic 3D prints at a hub are affordable. They have several if not dozens of hubs in most cities internationally.

Export to Shapeways or i.materialise: Professional service bureau’s who will produce your print on their own production floor. They have a wide range of materials and options if you’d rather print a gift in gold rather than PLA for example.

These are just some of the options. You can always still download your .STL (3D model) file and take it to a friends’/colleagues’ 3D printer.

The interface:

This is where you will make the magic happen. It is split up into two parts.

2D – has your bread&butter 2D tools like a pen, an eraser and a paintbucket, but also has the neat ‘trace’ function. You can start drawing freehand, draw on top of a background image you import, or use the trace for a quick starting shape based on the imported background image.

3D – This is where you move everything in the Z-direction (up and down). By separating these two sides so explicitly we keep it nice and controllable for you. 3D has your move, scale, curve and twist options. Now it is time to start combining and let your mind get to work. Combine any number of shapes and make your design as advanced as you can handle.

Objects with moving parts: 3D-printed at once.

Sharing:

With Transform you will have the option to share your designs with others through various ways. You can also access your account on multiple devices and always have access to your designs.

In the future we hope to make it possible for Transform users to create their own how-to and tutorial material and share it inside the application with other users.

We’ve already been witness to a number of unexpected and creative ways to build shapes in the interface and that is something we would like to facilitate as much as possible.

We have had some time to have fun internally testing our Transform app Alpha and we have made (what we think) some pretty rad stuff with it. Most of all our app is meant for people to have fun with and express their creativity. Like something you made? Print it as often as you want.

Gifts & memento’s

Jewelry, art pieces

Gameboard pieces, coins and characters

Toys, miniature trucks, castles, space craft and planes

Vases, snail-shaped tape dispensers, cookiecutters

Custom beer openers, working whistles, piggybanks

Juice pressers

Castle; ok this one took some concentrated effort of copypasting rows of bricks on top of each other, but it was simple!

The printed result, perfect for any gameboard or roleplaying evening

Give the gift of saving money with a 3D printed piggybank

Multiple piggybanks, print as many as you like – you’ve already made the design

And lots more!!

Makers

Doodle3D Transform is a very forgiving and creative tool to do 3D design with. If you have anything simple and just something that you want to make quickly this tool will serve you well. It fits in right along with your existing 3D toolkit.

Educators

As soon as the campaign successfully finishes you can make use of our early access to introduce the tool to your classroom or fablab. The 2D/3D split and simple nature of the interface makes this a lot safer and easier to pick up for young students. We recommend ages of 7 and up.

Designers

If you are more into Photoshop than AutoCAD but you are interested to get creative in 3D the Doodle3D Transform interface might just be what you need. Affordable and easy to use, it lets you get started on basic, but well designed, shapes quickly.

A ring 3D printed with copperfill filament

The WiFi-Box together with Transform form a beautiful duo. You get the wireless connectivity for (Marlin-based) 3D printers through the WiFi-Box, as well as our original Doodle3D Sketch app that is locally hosted on the box. Transform is ofcourse stand-alone, but through the export menu you can directly print to your own WiFi-Box. No more hassle with SD-cards. For more info on compatibility visit: http://doodle3d.com/wifibox.pdf

The new Transform app will be compatible with the WiFi-Box when we release V1.

Doodle3D WiFi-Box, also includes our original Sketch app

Doodle3D team: (left to right) Nico, Rick, Jeroen, Casper, Peter

Everyone who backs for a reward including our Transform app will get an early access invitation as soon as the campaign ends.

What will we be adding between what’s available during the early access to the Transform app and the final (V1) release?:

For sure’s:

Make Transform compatible with the WiFi-Box.

Interface enhancements.

Solid back-end to store and share designs with others.

Releasing Transform as an app on the appstores.

Mobile support

Wants:

Tutorials: Making it possible for people to make their own tutorials and share those with their designs with other Transform users

Importing existing 3D models (STL’s): nothing makes a clotheshanger more personal than having your kids add their own doodles to it.

Risks and challenges

We’ve successfully and timely shipped the product of our previous Kickstarter campaign, but software development is always challenging. This time around we have taken a lot more time & funds to invest into this project in advance to ensure we had a much more fleshed out product to show you before we crowdfunded this for the remainder of development time.

We can be sure that there will be an accessible version right after the campaign ends, and we feel we have taken sufficient margin on our other development goals that the delivery times we specified on V1 and V2 of the software are realistic.